How do I approach A House Seller ?

Question

Hello, I’ve been doing much research on how to wholesale houses and while i’m not ready yet, i’ve come across 2 boarded up properties next to each other. I got the contact info to one of the home owners. My question is, how do I go about approaching them ? What kind of questions should I ask about the house ? How do I obtain A contract ?

Account Closed · Answer

@Barry Pekin Thank you for the information!

Account Closed · Answer

@Barry Pekin Thank you much for the very informative answer. If the house is foreclosed due to missed mortgage payments does that mean the bank owns the property or does the tenant still own rights to that property?

Account Closed · Answer

@Vi K. Thank you very much for the response!

Barry Pekin · Answer

Account Closed,

Foreclosure is a process that takes some time.  The owner first gets a notice from the lender that they are in default, at which point the owner still owns the property, but it's considered in pre-foreclosure.  Lenders are more than happy to have the loan brought current, which is something we could help with.

At some point, however, the bank actually forecloses on the property.  At this point, they have taken ownership.

Barry Pekin · Answer

Account Closed,

It's really all about two things.

First, take action.  You may truly, truly suck at calling people on the phone.  The solution to that is to call people on the phone.  Swallow your inhibitions and just do it, and do it a lot.  Do not rely on just these two properties.  Go out and find more and call the owners.  Make this a habit.  You will find that eventually you don't suck at it.

Second, keep in mind what you are doing.  You are here to perform a service for a property owner who in this case might be sitting on something they don't know what to do with.  They have several options, but if it's sitting there boarded up and they don't have a plan, they might very well need help.  You're there to offer them a solution.  Your solution may or may not work for them, but you need to present it because it very possibly may be exactly what they need.  If it is what they need, then you have the beginnings of a deal.

So get on the phone, and find out what's going on with them and those properties.  You should be able to relatively quickly determine if there's any potential.  If they say something like, "I'm holding on to them until blah blah blah, and then I'm going to fix them up and sell them," it's probably not an opportunity for you - at least not right now.  But that doesn't mean you can't touch base every once in a while to see how it's going.  Things change over time.  They might successfully execute their plan, or they might grow tiresome and want to get rid of these.  Then you can see if you have the right solution for them.

This will all evolve.  You can't totally plan for how things will go when you call, but you can plan on how to connect with the sellers and offer your assistance.

Vee K. · Answer

Account Closed the easiest way for you to get in contact with the owner is just picking up the phone and call. If you don't want to call, send the owners some letters. If the owners are local, your goal is to meet them in person and find out why they have those properties boarded up. While at the meeting, find out their motivation and see if you could work out some offers that suit their needs.

Good luck!

Vi